February 19, 2009 |
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One in eight adolescents (12.5 percent) received specialty mental health services (inpatient or outpatient) for emotional or behavioral problems in the 12 months prior to the survey (Table 1). Over one tenth (11.1 percent) received outpatient specialty mental health services, with private therapists, psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, or counselors providing these services to 9.4 percent of adolescents. Inpatient or residential specialty care was received by 2.5 percent of adolescents, with 2.0 percent indicating they were hospitalized to receive treatment for emotional or behavioral problems.
Service Setting | Estimated Number (in 1,000s) | % |
---|---|---|
Specialty Mental Health (Inpatient or Outpatient) | 3,113 | 12.5% |
Outpatient | 2,781 | 11.1% |
Private Therapist, Psychologist, Psychiatrist, Social Worker, or Counselor | 2,362 | 9.4% |
Mental Health Clinic or Center | 579 | 2.3% |
Partial Day Hospital or Day Treatment Program | 416 | 1.7% |
In-Home Therapist, Counselor, or Family Preservation Worker | 703 | 2.8% |
Inpatient or Residential | 628 | 2.5% |
Overnight or Longer Stay in Any Type of Hospital | 510 | 2.0% |
Overnight or Longer Stay in a Residential Treatment Center | 199 | 0.8% |
Overnight or Longer Stay in Foster Care or in a Therapeutic Foster Care Home | 112 | 0.4% |
Educational** | 2,862 | 11.5% |
School Counselor, School Psychologist, or Having Regular Meetings with a Teacher | 2,428 | 9.7% |
Special Education Services While in a Regular Classroom or in a Special Classroom or Placement in a Special Program or Special School | 811 | 3.3% |
General Medical | 692 | 2.8% |
Pediatrician or Other Family Doctor | 692 | 2.8% |
Specialty Mental Health and Educational or General Medical | 1,278 | 5.1% |
Source: SAMHSA, 2007 NSDUH. |
Over one tenth (11.5 percent) of adolescents received mental health services in an educational setting, with 9.7 percent indicating that they had received services from a school counselor or school psychologist or through regular meetings with a teacher. Receiving mental health services from a pediatrician or other family doctor in a general medical setting was mentioned by 2.8 percent of adolescents. One in twenty (5.1 percent) adolescents received services in both a specialty mental health setting and an educational or general medical setting in the past year.
Female adolescents were more likely than their male counterparts to have received mental health services in the past year in outpatient specialty settings (13.3 vs. 9.1 percent), educational settings (13.2 vs. 9.9 percent), or general medical settings (3.2 vs. 2.3 percent), but there was no gender difference in the receipt of care in inpatient specialty settings (Figure 1).
Service Setting* | Female | Male |
---|---|---|
Outpatient Specialty | 13.3% | 9.1% |
Inpatient Specialty | 2.4% | 2.6% |
Educational** | 13.2% | 9.9% |
General Medical | 3.2% | 2.3% |
Source: SAMHSA, 2007 NSDUH. |
Adolescents who received services in the past 12 months were asked to indicate the reasons for receiving care at their last visit. Among adolescents who received specialty outpatient mental health services, feeling depressed was the most commonly mentioned reason for receiving care at the last visit (50.4 percent) (Table 2). Feeling depressed was also the most commonly mentioned reason among those who received care through general medical and educational settings at the last visit (44.3 and 38.0 percent, respectively). Among those who received specialty inpatient care, thinking about or attempting suicide was mentioned as often as feeling depressed (44.9 and 44.8 percent, respectively). In comparison, suicidal thoughts or attempts were mentioned by less than 20 percent of adolescents receiving services in settings other than inpatient specialty care. Among adolescents who reported specialty mental health services and educational or general medical services, feeling depressed was the most common reason for receiving care at the last visit.
Reasons for Receiving Services | Specialty Mental Health | Educational** | General Medical | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Total | Outpatient | Inpatient | |||
Felt Depressed | 50.0% | 50.4% | 44.8% | 38.0% | 44.3% |
Problems at Home/Family | 28.8% | 29.0% | 14.9% | 17.0% | 10.2% |
Breaking Rules or "Acting Out" | 25.1% | 24.7% | 24.8% | 23.5% | 17.7% |
Thought about Killing Self or Tried to Kill Self | 20.2% | 18.5% | 44.9% | 9.3% | 11.6% |
Felt Very Afraid or Tense | 17.9% | 17.1% | 17.9% | 15.8% | 12.2% |
Trouble Controlling Anger | 16.8% | 16.7% | 12.5% | 10.9% | 8.2% |
Got into Physical Fights | 5.4% | 5.1% | 5.2% | 6.2% | 2.4% |
Problems at School | 17.2% | 17.0% | 9.7% | 23.6% | 13.2% |
Problems with Friends | 12.1% | 12.1% | 5.3% | 19.8% | 3.4% |
Problems with People Other than Family/Friends | 8.9% | 8.8% | 6.0% | 12.2% | 6.0% |
Eating Problems | 9.7% | 9.3% | 9.2% | 5.7% | 14.5% |
Other Diagnosed Mental/Neurological Disorder | 2.3% | 2.1% | 2.1% | 0.2% | 3.0% |
Some Other Reason | 10.7% | 10.1% | 9.6% | 7.1% | 14.0% |
Source: SAMHSA, 2007 NSDUH. |
Problems at home or with the family also were commonly mentioned as reasons for receiving services at the last visit among adolescents receiving outpatient specialty care (29.0 percent). Breaking rules or "acting out" was mentioned by about a quarter of all adolescents receiving services across most settings. Problems at school were mentioned by about a quarter (23.6 percent) of those receiving services through an educational setting.
Females were generally more likely than males to mention each reason for receiving services in each setting (data not shown). One notable exception was that breaking rules or "acting out" was more likely to be mentioned by males than females receiving services through an educational setting (31.9 vs. 18.3 percent).
Adolescents receive mental health services in a variety of settings, with the outpatient specialty and educational settings being the most frequently mentioned. Feeling depressed was the most commonly cited reason for receiving services across settings. Services for suicidal thoughts and attempts were mentioned most commonly by adolescents who received care in a specialty mental health setting, particularly inpatient care. Educators and health care providers may be among the first to be contacted about mental health issues among adolescents. Therefore, it is important to ensure that these professionals are equipped to recognize mental health problems and to direct adolescents toward appropriate services. This also underscores the importance of ensuring that adolescents with mental, emotional, or behavioral problems and their families have access to needed services.
The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) is an annual survey sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The data used in this report are from the 2007 NSDUH. The survey collects data by administering questionnaires to a representative sample of the population through face-to-face interviews at their place of residence. The NSDUH Report is prepared by the Office of Applied Studies (OAS), SAMHSA, and by RTI International in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. (RTI International is a trade name of Research Triangle Institute.) Information on the most recent NSDUH is available in the following publication: Office of Applied Studies. (2008). Results from the 2007 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: National findings (DHHS Publication No. SMA 08-4343, NSDUH Series H-34). Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Also available online: http://oas.samhsa.gov. |
The NSDUH Report is published periodically by the Office of Applied Studies, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). All material appearing in this report is in the public domain and may be reproduced or copied without permission from SAMHSA. Additional copies of this report or other reports from the Office of Applied Studies are available online: http://oas.samhsa.gov. Citation of the source is appreciated. For questions about this report, please e-mail: shortreports@samhsa.hhs.gov.
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This page was last updated on February 17, 2009. |